Nicki's book blog

The Dying Light by Joy Ellis -psychological thriller         Ex DCI Matt Ballard and his partner (Ex DS) Liz are now both retired from the force. To keep the grey matter active and as they are too young “to have an allotment and join the bowling club” have decided to start a P.I business. Having just completed their first successful case they are taking some down time- or so they think. A neighbour and friend is rather worried about his nearest neighbour. A lady who lives on her own appears to be being targeted at some rather nasty incidents. Her cat has been killed and her shed broken into amongst other things. Matt and Liz say they will do their best but as friends rather than P.I’s. The friend Will is also worried about his wife Kate who since a breakdown a few years ago has been behaving rather oddly and not the woman he knew and loved. When he has to fly over to Canada for a funeral, Liz offers to keep an eye on Kate whose won...

Shed No Tears- Caz Frear- Crime Thriller “BU T IF YOU'D GOT AWAY WITH MURDER, WHAT WOULD YOU DO WHEN THE CASE IS RE-OPENED?” DC Cat Kinsella and her team are investigating the “roommate” killings as there is another possible victim. The man whom they thought was the perpetrator is now dead himself but things aren’t adding up as the first victims were strangled and the latest one was shot. Cat has her own issues. Her boyfriend had his sister go missing several years before then being found dead and she knows her father, albeit innocent, knows something about this. This is the third in the series but happily stands alone (I hadn’t read the others). This is a fairly fast pace and very “chatty” style of crime writing- something different and new to me. Alot is learned from conversations rather than situations and the whole thing is told by Cat and hence from her perspective. A very different read and one to keep the grey matter alive. For more rev...

What Lies Beneath- Adam Croft- Crime                  When two men out fishing on Rutland water find what they first thought is a pile of clothes and turns out to be a body, DI Caroline Hills and her team have their work cut out. The body has been strategically placed which may give some clues but why? The victim runs a construction firm and is on the local council- nothing glaringly obvious that would make him a target. There isn’t a large team as there would be anywhere else as Rutland being the smallest county in England has only a few key players. Caroline and her family have recently moved from London and she is finding the bucolic life rather different from the hustle and bustle of the metropolis and how people treat each other is something totally foreign to her. She has her own well kept secret but things are moving on and it's time to finally spill the beans. I really enjoyed this, a good plot and likeable c...

All the Lonely People by Mike Gayle Literary Fiction Oh boy! I knew from the blurb I was likely to enjoy this, what I wasn’t prepared for was that even just a few pages in that I would be so engaged with Hubert. Hubert is a lonely old man of 84. His daughter lives in Australia and on their regular phone calls he tells her of his life and his activities and his friends- except every word is his imagination. He rarely goes out and sees very little of the human race. He even has notes about his three friends so that story lines add up and make sense. His daughter is coming home in a few months and he doesn’t know quite how he is going to tell her that it's all made up. One day he gets a knock on the door and there instead of a parcel delivery for someone else, stands a young woman and her daughter who have just moved in close by.  Alternate chapters take us back to 1958 and Huberts arrival from Jamaica and his meeting with the love of his life Joy...

I n My Wake by Ruth Harrow-psychological thriller       Hannah is married to Will and they have a young daughter. She is back in her home village for the funeral of her sister April who committed suicide. A body was never found but she was seen by the river and her body was found nearby. At the funeral someone has pasted over the eulogy insinuating that April had something to do with a young girl who was killed years before. Again a body was neer found- the father was arrested however most people in the village never believed the father would hurt his daughter. April once dated Will and issued Hannah a warning about him- something at the time she dismissed as jealousy. As time goes on Hannah is finding more and more about Will and the past that she never knew. Occasional chapters take us back to when Will and April were dating and Hannah was around twelve years of age. A read that slowly but surely draws you in. You know that there is ...

House Of Straw- Marc Scott-Psychological Thriller Bree has just lost her twin brotherJamie whom she was close to  in a tragic accident that she was part of herself. She keeps seeing a small girl dressed in a sowester as if she is staring at her.  Poppy has a violent boyfriend and has had a troubled past. She now works in a restaurant which she both enjoys and does well at. Cameron, her boyfriend has other ideas and takes all her money to fulfill his habit. Poppy does her best to sort out the bills and is at danger of eviction as the rent is way overdue, Cameron being selfish doesn't contribute at all from his “pay”- he is a dole scrounger.   We go back in time to when Poppy was in care and to before she was born. There are several brutal scenes in this from the accident to Poppy being abused as a child. This is quite a “wordy” read if you get my meaning- there are excellent, although at times disturbing, graphic descriptions of abuse, sex a...

BEFORE HE KILLS AGAIN by Margaret Murphy There is a predator out and about in Liverpool and various women are on his agenda. Some prostitutes, some not but no-one can identify him, he leaves no trace and none of the women have seen his face. The victims are left battered and bruised, at times raped but at least alive. Detective Cassie Rowan and her team are on the trail . Is he the Furman as he has become known due to his draping the women in a fur stole? This is a complex and very interesting plot. I won’t spoil anything other than to say there are twists and turns along the way and rather a surprise. I took to Cassie. She is rather radical at times and tenacious. One determined young lady who doesn’t always follow protocol but her enthusiasm gets her through. A good length novel from a new author to me and one I enjoyed reading. The first of a new series of Cassie Rowan novels. An enjoyable and interesting read. BEFORE HE KILLS AGAIN (Detective Ca...

The House Party by Mary Grand - Mystery/crime Beth and Kathleen are close friends living on the Isle of Wight. At a gathering once evening Kathleen appears troubled and Beth reaches out to her. Kathleen says she is frightened of someone who is at the gathering and has more to tell but will tell Beth more the next day when they are alone. The next morning Kathleen is found at the bottom of the cliff from her garden apparently having fallen and is now dead. Her beloved chickens are out- something she would never ever do. Beth thinks there is more to her death than an accident possibly chasing a pet. She talks to her husband Sami who it appears has his own secrets involving Kathleen so she is now not even sure that she can trust her own spouse. After a short time Beth finds out a little more about Kathleen and when she feels threatened herself it is Sami that she turns to. A complex plot and one to keep the grey matter active in a very good way. I like...